EP0605467A1 - Improved cross connect system for telecommunications systems. - Google Patents

Improved cross connect system for telecommunications systems.

Info

Publication number
EP0605467A1
EP0605467A1 EP92918775A EP92918775A EP0605467A1 EP 0605467 A1 EP0605467 A1 EP 0605467A1 EP 92918775 A EP92918775 A EP 92918775A EP 92918775 A EP92918775 A EP 92918775A EP 0605467 A1 EP0605467 A1 EP 0605467A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
contacts
contact
wires
cap
plug
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP92918775A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0605467B1 (en
Inventor
George Jack Knox
William Donald Mckittrick
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
3M Co
Original Assignee
Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co filed Critical Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co
Publication of EP0605467A1 publication Critical patent/EP0605467A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0605467B1 publication Critical patent/EP0605467B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
    • H01R9/00—Structural associations of a plurality of mutually-insulated electrical connecting elements, e.g. terminal strips or terminal blocks; Terminals or binding posts mounted upon a base or in a case; Bases therefor
    • H01R9/22—Bases, e.g. strip, block, panel
    • H01R9/24—Terminal blocks
    • H01R9/2491—Terminal blocks structurally associated with plugs or sockets
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
    • H01R12/00—Structural associations of a plurality of mutually-insulated electrical connecting elements, specially adapted for printed circuits, e.g. printed circuit boards [PCB], flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures, e.g. terminal strips, terminal blocks; Coupling devices specially adapted for printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures; Terminals specially adapted for contact with, or insertion into, printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables, or like generally planar structures
    • H01R12/50—Fixed connections
    • H01R12/59—Fixed connections for flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures
    • H01R12/61—Fixed connections for flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures connecting to flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures
    • H01R12/613—Fixed connections for flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures connecting to flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures by means of interconnecting elements
    • H01R12/616—Fixed connections for flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures connecting to flexible printed circuits, flat or ribbon cables or like structures by means of interconnecting elements having contacts penetrating insulation for making contact with conductors, e.g. needle points
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
    • H01R4/00—Electrically-conductive connections between two or more conductive members in direct contact, i.e. touching one another; Means for effecting or maintaining such contact; Electrically-conductive connections having two or more spaced connecting locations for conductors and using contact members penetrating insulation
    • H01R4/24—Connections using contact members penetrating or cutting insulation or cable strands
    • H01R4/2416—Connections using contact members penetrating or cutting insulation or cable strands the contact members having insulation-cutting edges, e.g. of tuning fork type
    • H01R4/242—Connections using contact members penetrating or cutting insulation or cable strands the contact members having insulation-cutting edges, e.g. of tuning fork type the contact members being plates having a single slot
    • H01R4/2425—Flat plates, e.g. multi-layered flat plates
    • H01R4/2429—Flat plates, e.g. multi-layered flat plates mounted in an insulating base
    • H01R4/2433—Flat plates, e.g. multi-layered flat plates mounted in an insulating base one part of the base being movable to push the cable into the slot
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
    • H01R2201/00—Connectors or connections adapted for particular applications
    • H01R2201/16—Connectors or connections adapted for particular applications for telephony

Definitions

  • This invention relates to electrical connectors and more specifically to a cross connect terminal for use in telecommunications systems for connecting wire pairs, the tip and the ring, from a central office to wire pairs from a distribution cable. Whenever testing, half tapping or transferring of the wires is necessary, it means a change at the cross connect block or blocks for a technician.
  • Cross connect blocks have been known and used in the telecommunications industry for the purpose of terminating central office cables and matching pairs therefrom with pairs in distribution lines to subscribers.
  • a cross connect block is used, a large cable from the central office is generally terminated.
  • smaller distribution cables are also connected to cross connect blocks mounted in juxtaposition to the other cross connect blocks permitting the matching of wire pairs of the central office cable with the correct pair to a subscriber.
  • the cross connect blocks permit changes in the phone circuits to be made, they permit tests of the circuits to be made, and transfers can be made. In some installations, the cross connect block permits additional phones to be connected to a given line pair.
  • Examples of the existing cross connect blocks include USA pat. No. 4,210,378 which uses a screw type binding post to make the connection between one pair of wires and another. One connection is generally a permanent connection to the block. Improvements on this product to make quicker and faster connections are described in USA pat. Nos. 4,431,247 and 4,815,988. Other examples of a different style of cross connect blocks are illustrated in USA pat. Nos. 4,279,460 and 4,789,354. In each of these examples, wire pairs from one line can readily be joined to wire pairs in an adjacent cross connect block by running wires between the contact elements of the two blocks.
  • USA patent No. 4,127,312 teaches the use of contacts disposed at 90° angles with each other such that initially, contact may be made with a discreet wire through the insulation displacement connection portion of the contact and the opposite end of the contact is provided with a tuning fork contact to make electrical contact with the legs of another contact element to join the elements in electrical connection.
  • This patent also illustrates one way to form such a contact, although this construction requires additional space in the connector body and more metal is needed in the contact.
  • the present invention provides a plug module joined to two jumper wires and the module can be moved, repositioned, connected and disconnected to a circuit many times and the connection between the wires and the contacts does not have be changed. They can remain sealed in the plug with the encapsulant surrounding the junction between the wires and contacts.
  • the present invention further provides a cross connect block wherein the pairs of wires from a cable are joined to a support block and then individual pairs of distribution wires may be joined to the cable.
  • Cross connections (pairs, triples or quads) are run between terminals on the two sides of a distribution frame, or between contacts in a terminal or block.
  • the connector of the present invention affords half tapping or a bridged connection to be made to a circuit without disturbing its continuity. Half tapping affords the use of the same pair of wires from the cable to be directed to additional phones of a particular subscriber.
  • the connector of the present invention permits stacking of the plugs for the purpose of half tapping and it provides for stacking for the purpose of testing the connection to the wire pair from the central office.
  • the plugs of the connector of the present invention permit the transfer of lines between one wire pair in the cable to another wire pair in a cable without interrupting the continuity of the circuit.
  • the modular plug comprises a cap attached to a body by an integrally molded hinge and it is held in the closed wire connection position by an integrally molded latch. Two identical contact elements are disposed in the body. The cap has two wire ports and upon movement of the cap to the closed position the wires are inserted into the contacts. No tools, such as screw drivers or punchdown tools are needed to complete a wire connection to the modular plug.
  • the present invention provides an electrical connector for connection of pairs of wires to other pairs of wires and comprises a terminal block and a plurality of modular plugs formed to mate with the terminal block and to make electrical connection to wires joined to the terminal block.
  • the terminal block comprises a base having means for supporting a plurality of wires and a cover adapted to fit on the base.
  • the cover supports a plurality of terminal contacts for making connection to wires supported by the base and encloses the ends of the wires in the base.
  • the cover member has apertures affording access to the terminal contacts to make electrical connection with the wires.
  • the cover also has location means about the apertures for polarizing pairs of said apertures.
  • the plugs comprise an insulative body having opposite ends and a hinged cap attached to one end of the body by an integrally molded hinge formed between the body and cap. At least one splicing contact is supported in the body with opposite end portions, one of the end portions being adapted to make electrical connection with the terminal contacts and the other end portion being adapted to make electrical connection to a jumper wire.
  • the cap has means for facilitating connection between a jumper wire and the other end portion of the splicing contact.
  • the end of the body opposite the cover has means for mating with the location means of the cover for positioning one end portion of the splicing contact in an aperture to make electrical contact to a terminal contact.
  • the splicing contact comprises a thin metal plate having an insulation displacing contact portion on one end and a tuning fork contact portion on the other.
  • the tuning fork contact portion is disposed in angular relationship to the insulation displacing portion.
  • the plug preferably has two contacts which are identical and positioned in the plug, with one contact rotated about its longitudinal axis 180 * to the other contact.
  • the plugs are also provided with apertures in the cover which afford access to the insulation displacing contacts and permit plugs to be stacked upon each other to provide half tapping and transfer of circuits as will be described later.
  • the plugs also afford means for disconnecting a pair of jumper wires from one set of wires in the terminal block and connecting the same to another set.
  • Figure 1 is an isometric view of the connector of the present invention illustrating the front, top and left end of a cross-connect terminal block and a plurality of modular plugs, as positioned during use;
  • FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the connector of Figure 1 with parts removed for purposes of illustration of portions behind the removed parts;
  • Figure 3 is an exploded cross sectional view of the parts of the connector as positioned during assembly with a cable;
  • Figure 4 is an isometric view of the cover of the terminal block for just five pair of wires and illustrates a plurality of modular plugs in various positions;
  • Figure 5 is an isometric view of a modular plug showing the back, bottom and left side;
  • Figure 6 is a perspective view of the plug of Figure 5 showing the back, top and right side thereof;
  • Figure 7 is a vertical sectional view of the plug;
  • Figure 8 is a horizontal sectional view of the plug
  • Figure 9 is a perspective view of a pair of stacked plugs, with the cap of the top plug in the open position and a pair of wires inserted in the ports in the cap;
  • Figure 10 is a perspective view of some of the contacts of the connector terminal block and a pair of modular plugs with wires connected to the terminal block contacts to diagrammatically illustrate the electrical connections;
  • Figures 11a, lib, lie and lid diagrammatically illustrate the transfer steps to transfer a circuit from a cable and an old distribution cable to the cable and a new distribution cable without interruption of the circuit.
  • the connector of the present invention is generally designated 15 and comprises a terminal block 16, having a pair of five pair covers 18, as illustrated, and a plurality of modular plugs 20 formed to mate with the terminal block and to make electrical connection to wires joined to the terminal block 16.
  • the terminal block 16 comprises a base 21 having transverse grooves formed between wire combs or posts 22 and posts 24 to define means for supporting a plurality of wires 23 positioned transversely across the base 21.
  • the posts 22 are closely spaced, spaced less than the diameter of the insulation on the wires, such that when a wire is positioned therebetween it is held in place tightly.
  • the inner wall of the base adjacent the posts 22 serves to sever the wires 23 when the covers 18 are assembled.on the base 21.
  • the grooves are formed across the base 21 by spaced wire supports 25 and 26 and the supports are recessed to cradle the wires.
  • the supports 25 are positioned adjacent to the posts 22 and 24 and are formed with closely spaced walls, see Figure 2, to receive the legs of a contact therebetween and the walls of the supports have a rib extending therebetween parallel to the path of the wire to support the wires 23 to drive them into the contacts between the legs thereof.
  • Insulative walls 27 are positioned between the wire channels to isolate the contacts.
  • the covers 18 are adapted to fit on the base 21 and they support contacts 30 for making a permanent electrical connection to the wire pairs from a cable, they have a cutter bar 31 to sever the wires to length and they serve to encapsulate the wire ends and wire junctions in the base.
  • the covers 18 have a plurality of wire positioning combs, combs 32 adjacent the right edge, combs 33 adjacent to the two rows of contacts 30, and a central comb 34 which fits between and holds the wires in the cradles formed by posts 26.
  • the covers 18 each have two rows of 10 apertures 35 affording access to the contacts 30 to make electrical connection with the wires.
  • Each cover 18 has integrally formed walls defining a first cavity 36 for receiving the back of a modular plug 20. Positioned adjacent to the walls defining the cavity are walls defining a rectangular boss 37. The end walls defining the boss 37 have opposite outwardly facing keyways 38.
  • the cavity and boss define location means about one row of apertures 35 for polarizing pairs of the apertures 35 along the bottom edge of the covers 18 of the terminal block and orient the plugs 20 on the terminal block.
  • the apertures 35 of the first or bottom row are positioned within the cavities 36.
  • the modular plug 20 comprises an insulative body 40 and a cap 41.
  • the cap is attached to the body by integrally molded hinge portions defined by ears 42 on the body 40, having cavities and a hook shape center ear, to receive the trunnion 44 molded with the cap 41.
  • the body is generally rectangular and box-like in outer appearance, which is defined by thin molded walls.
  • the interior of the body 40 is formed with a support 43 for a pair of identical conductive metal splicing contacts 45.
  • the cap 41 is formed with two wire receiving channels 46.
  • An integrally molded resilient latch 47 projects between two wire receiving recesses 49 in the bottom side of the body 40 to a position to engage a detent 48 on the cap 41 to secure the cap in place when in the closed position.
  • Each splicing contact 45 is formed of a thin metal plate having a tuning fork contact portion 50 on one end adapted to make contact with a leg or blade of another contact and a wire insulation displacing contact portion 51 on the other end for making an electrical connection with a wire.
  • the contact portion 51 is disposed in a plane at 90 ° to the plane of the tuning fork portion 50.
  • the portion 51 has a deep slot 52 to receive the jumper wires and the slots 52 are disposed in aligned relationship with the channels 46 in the cap 41.
  • the portions 50 and 51 are formed by bending the thin metal plate about an axis such that the centerline of the tuning fork contact 50 lies in a plane defined by the center axis of the portion 51.
  • the plane of the tuning fork portion 50 is offset to make connection with one of the legs of the contact portion 51 or one of the contacts 30 at a position offset from the slot therein.
  • one contact 45 is rotated about a longitudinal axis by 180 ° in relationship to the other contact of the pair.
  • the contacts 45 are positioned in the body 40 with the portions 50 projecting from the bottom surface sufficiently to penetrate the apertures 35 in the cover 18 and make good electrical contact with a contact 30.
  • the bent portion of the contact forming the portion 51 provides a support surface for the contact 45 in the bottom of a cruciform recess molded in the support 43 of the body 40, see Figures 7 and 8 where the contacts 45 are held by barbs penetrating the walls of the recess and the support 43 has an aperture through which portion 50 of the contacts 45 project.
  • the portion 51 projects into the upper portion of the body to receive the jumper wire positioned therein by the cap wire receiving channels 46.
  • the splicing contacts 45 are separated by a thin wall member 54 formed in the body 40 to electrically isolate the same.
  • the body 40 is formed with a rectangular recessed area to receive a boss. This area has keys 55 formed in the walls which keys 55 are of a size and shape to be received in the keyways 38 of the boss 37.
  • the keys 55 and keyways 38 provide the orientation as described above and they also provide mechanical support to prevent forces from side loads (pulling on the jumper wires e.g.) from disturbing the electrical connection of a contact portion 50 with a contact 30 or a contact portion 51.
  • the body 40 is also formed with a second resilient latch 59 in the bottom wall which is received by the recess 39 in the bottom wall member forming the cavity 36 on the cover 18 or in a recess 58 formed in the front part and lower wall 61 of cap 41, see Figure 8.
  • the latch 59 is spaced from the support 43 for the splicing contacts 45, which support 43 is shaped to be received in the cavity 36 with the keys 55 in keyways 38 and the latch 59 in the recess 39.
  • the walls of the body 40 surround the boss 37 and the walls defining the recess 36.
  • the cap 41 is hinged to pivot from a raised front wire loading position, see plug 20A with the cover open in Figure 4, to a closed position to dispose the wires in the channels 46 in the contact portions 51. Slots 53 are formed transversely to the channels 46 to receive the contact portions 51 but the channels serve to support the wire so it will be properly inserted into the slot 52 of the contact.
  • the caps 41 are also provided with slots or apertures 60 in the top or front wall.
  • the apertures 60 are surrounded by walls 61 defining another cavity 62 for receiving the splicing contact support 43 of a body 40.
  • the apertures 60 are formed like the apertures 35 and the walls 61 also form a rectangular boss with keyways 64 to receive the keys 55.
  • FIG. 9 and 10 illustrate the stacking of the modular plugs, with the splicing contacts 45 of one plug making electrical contact with the legs of the contact portion 51 of the lower plug, which in turn is electrically connected to the bottom row of wire contacts 30.
  • the base 21 of the terminal block is preferably formed of glass-filled PBT thermoplastic and the covers 18 are formed of a similar insulative material. Since the base and cover are used to make a severing member for the wires they are both formed of a high tensile strength glass-filled engineering plastic with sufficient hardness to sever the wires. Even though the terminal block needs to make only one termination to the wires, if it is made from a strong plastic it restricts the need for metal cutting devices to be used in the severing of the wires.
  • Suitable materials include Valox 420, available from General Electric Company, Plastics Group, One Plastics Avenue, Pittsfield, Massachusetts 01201, USA, 30% glass- filled Ultem, also available from General Electric Company or 30% glass-filled SAN available from ICI Advanced Materials, 475 Creamery Way, Exton, Pennsylvania.
  • the connector of this invention is preferably sealed with a moisture restrictive sealant to encapsulate the junctions between the wires and contacts. Such sealant material will be placed in the base 21 and in the body 40 and cap 41.
  • the connector of the present invention affords the stacking of plugs 20 to provide for testing of the connections with the wires from the cable.
  • the stacking also affords half tapping to the circuit.
  • plugs can be mounted on the covers and make electrical connections with the wires from the cables through the second row of apertures 35.
  • the novelty of having a pair of jumper wires in each repositionable modular plug permits the plug to be readily repositioned to move the subscriber from one incoming line to another by simply unplugging the plug 20 from one position and attaching it another place on the cover 18 or to another connector.
  • the connector of the present invention makes such a transfer easy using one temporary and one replacement jumper line.
  • the temporary jumper line and the original jumper line are left over but both are reusable.
  • FIGs 11a through lid there is illustrated the steps of the transfer of a circuit between two cables 70 and 71 to a circuit between cables 70 and 72 without interrupting the continuity of the new circuit.
  • the present circuit is between the incoming cable 70 to a terminal block 16a, joined by a plug 20a and jumper wire 75 to a plug 20b connected via the terminal block 16b to the old cable 71.
  • the new cable 72 is joined to a terminal block 16c.
  • the first step is to prepare a jumper consisting of a plug 20d, jumper wire 76 and a plug 20c.
  • the plug 20d is stacked on plug 20a and plug 20c is connected to terminal block 16c.
  • the first connection is made to the new line.
  • another jumper is prepared having a plug 20e, wire 77 and a plug 2Of.
  • the plug 20e is connected to the contacts 30 joined to cable 70 beneath the second row of apertures 35 and the plug 2Of is stacked on top of plug 20d, see Figure lib. With these connections made there are redundant circuits between the cable 70 and the jumper wire 76.
  • plug 20a may be removed from the terminal block 16a and disconnected from plug 20d without interrupting the new circuit to cable 72.
  • plug 20d When plug 20d is positioned in the place of plug 20a, the transfer between the cable 70 and the cable 72 is complete and plugs 20e and 2Of may be unplugged.
  • the plugs 20d and 20c are also positioned to resist pullout as were the original plugs 20a and 20b.
  • the connector for use as a cross connect block has been described with reference to one embodiment. It is to be understood however that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, some modifications include the reduction in size of the covers and base to a single row of wire contacts 30 and making the same narrower, i.e. reducing the width of the base and covers to support only one row of contacts 30 and to have only the locating means; making the bases 25 pair long instead of 10, such that five covers 18 can be placed on one base 16; or making the covers longer.
  • the invention consists of a plug which permits facile connection of a wire pair to the plugs, stacking of the plugs to connect the pairs and disconnect the pairs, and a terminal block to which the plugs may be connected to join the wire pairs of the plugs to pairs of a cable.

Abstract

Un connecteur d'interconnexion pour des systèmes de télécommunications permet de réduire le temps requis pour installer et effectuer des interconnexions lorsque les connexions de câbles sont faites à la main et que l'on effectue des modifications entre des circuits en retirant une fiche modulaire de sa prise et en la branchant en une position différente. Le connecteur de la présente invention comprend un bloc de raccordement (16) acceptant une multiplicité de fiches (20) dont chacune est connectée à une paire de câbles, les fiches (20) s'adaptant sur le bloc de raccordement (16) ou pouvant être empilées les unes sur les autres pour effectuer un demi-branchement, une mise à l'essai ou un transfert.An interconnect connector for telecommunications systems can reduce the time required to install and interconnect when cable connections are made by hand and modifications are made between circuits by removing a modular plug from its taken and plugging it into a different position. The connector of the present invention comprises a connection block (16) accepting a multiplicity of plugs (20) each of which is connected to a pair of cables, the plugs (20) fitting onto the connection block (16) or being able to be stacked on top of each other for half-wiring, testing or transfer.

Description

IMPROVED CROSS CONNECT SYSTEM FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS
This invention relates to electrical connectors and more specifically to a cross connect terminal for use in telecommunications systems for connecting wire pairs, the tip and the ring, from a central office to wire pairs from a distribution cable. Whenever testing, half tapping or transferring of the wires is necessary, it means a change at the cross connect block or blocks for a technician.
Cross connect blocks have been known and used in the telecommunications industry for the purpose of terminating central office cables and matching pairs therefrom with pairs in distribution lines to subscribers. At the point where a cross connect block is used, a large cable from the central office is generally terminated. At this station smaller distribution cables are also connected to cross connect blocks mounted in juxtaposition to the other cross connect blocks permitting the matching of wire pairs of the central office cable with the correct pair to a subscriber. The cross connect blocks permit changes in the phone circuits to be made, they permit tests of the circuits to be made, and transfers can be made. In some installations, the cross connect block permits additional phones to be connected to a given line pair.
Examples of the existing cross connect blocks include USA pat. No. 4,210,378 which uses a screw type binding post to make the connection between one pair of wires and another. One connection is generally a permanent connection to the block. Improvements on this product to make quicker and faster connections are described in USA pat. Nos. 4,431,247 and 4,815,988. Other examples of a different style of cross connect blocks are illustrated in USA pat. Nos. 4,279,460 and 4,789,354. In each of these examples, wire pairs from one line can readily be joined to wire pairs in an adjacent cross connect block by running wires between the contact elements of the two blocks.
In addition to these prior teachings of cross connect blocks and systems of cross connection, the art is replete with patents related to insulation displacement connectors such as USA pat. Nos. 4,341,430, 4,533,196 and U.K. patent No. 2,129,630. These references show varying types of telecommunication or electrical connectors wherein the wire is directed into a U-slot in a metal contact element and the contact element displaces the insulation to make resilient pressure contact against the conductor and make electrical connection therewith.
USA pat. No. 4,127,312 and copending USA patent application Serial No. 07/684,323 filed April 12, 1991, and assigned to the assignee of this application, disclose connectors having contact elements for making insulation displacement connection with discreet wires and they teach making connections between different wire pairs. USA patent No. 4,127,312 teaches the use of contacts disposed at 90° angles with each other such that initially, contact may be made with a discreet wire through the insulation displacement connection portion of the contact and the opposite end of the contact is provided with a tuning fork contact to make electrical contact with the legs of another contact element to join the elements in electrical connection. This patent also illustrates one way to form such a contact, although this construction requires additional space in the connector body and more metal is needed in the contact.
In the cross connect constructions of the prior art, when it is desired to change the position of a wire pair to another terminal block or to change the position of the wires on the same terminal block, it was necessary to disconnect the wire from the connector and make a new connection to a different connector or contact. The present invention provides a plug module joined to two jumper wires and the module can be moved, repositioned, connected and disconnected to a circuit many times and the connection between the wires and the contacts does not have be changed. They can remain sealed in the plug with the encapsulant surrounding the junction between the wires and contacts.
The present invention further provides a cross connect block wherein the pairs of wires from a cable are joined to a support block and then individual pairs of distribution wires may be joined to the cable. Cross connections (pairs, triples or quads) are run between terminals on the two sides of a distribution frame, or between contacts in a terminal or block. The connector of the present invention affords half tapping or a bridged connection to be made to a circuit without disturbing its continuity. Half tapping affords the use of the same pair of wires from the cable to be directed to additional phones of a particular subscriber.
Further, the connector of the present invention permits stacking of the plugs for the purpose of half tapping and it provides for stacking for the purpose of testing the connection to the wire pair from the central office.
Additionally, the plugs of the connector of the present invention permit the transfer of lines between one wire pair in the cable to another wire pair in a cable without interrupting the continuity of the circuit. The modular plug comprises a cap attached to a body by an integrally molded hinge and it is held in the closed wire connection position by an integrally molded latch. Two identical contact elements are disposed in the body. The cap has two wire ports and upon movement of the cap to the closed position the wires are inserted into the contacts. No tools, such as screw drivers or punchdown tools are needed to complete a wire connection to the modular plug.
These and other advantages of the present invention will become more apparent. The present invention provides an electrical connector for connection of pairs of wires to other pairs of wires and comprises a terminal block and a plurality of modular plugs formed to mate with the terminal block and to make electrical connection to wires joined to the terminal block. The terminal block comprises a base having means for supporting a plurality of wires and a cover adapted to fit on the base. The cover supports a plurality of terminal contacts for making connection to wires supported by the base and encloses the ends of the wires in the base. The cover member has apertures affording access to the terminal contacts to make electrical connection with the wires. The cover also has location means about the apertures for polarizing pairs of said apertures. The plugs comprise an insulative body having opposite ends and a hinged cap attached to one end of the body by an integrally molded hinge formed between the body and cap. At least one splicing contact is supported in the body with opposite end portions, one of the end portions being adapted to make electrical connection with the terminal contacts and the other end portion being adapted to make electrical connection to a jumper wire. The cap has means for facilitating connection between a jumper wire and the other end portion of the splicing contact. The end of the body opposite the cover has means for mating with the location means of the cover for positioning one end portion of the splicing contact in an aperture to make electrical contact to a terminal contact. The splicing contact comprises a thin metal plate having an insulation displacing contact portion on one end and a tuning fork contact portion on the other. The tuning fork contact portion is disposed in angular relationship to the insulation displacing portion. The plug preferably has two contacts which are identical and positioned in the plug, with one contact rotated about its longitudinal axis 180* to the other contact. The plugs are also provided with apertures in the cover which afford access to the insulation displacing contacts and permit plugs to be stacked upon each other to provide half tapping and transfer of circuits as will be described later. The plugs also afford means for disconnecting a pair of jumper wires from one set of wires in the terminal block and connecting the same to another set.
The invention will be more fully understood upon reading the detailed description of the invention which refers to the accompanying drawing wherein:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of the connector of the present invention illustrating the front, top and left end of a cross-connect terminal block and a plurality of modular plugs, as positioned during use;
Figure 2 is an isometric view of the connector of Figure 1 with parts removed for purposes of illustration of portions behind the removed parts;
Figure 3 is an exploded cross sectional view of the parts of the connector as positioned during assembly with a cable;
Figure 4 is an isometric view of the cover of the terminal block for just five pair of wires and illustrates a plurality of modular plugs in various positions;
Figure 5 is an isometric view of a modular plug showing the back, bottom and left side;
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the plug of Figure 5 showing the back, top and right side thereof; Figure 7 is a vertical sectional view of the plug;
Figure 8 is a horizontal sectional view of the plug;
Figure 9 is a perspective view of a pair of stacked plugs, with the cap of the top plug in the open position and a pair of wires inserted in the ports in the cap; Figure 10 is a perspective view of some of the contacts of the connector terminal block and a pair of modular plugs with wires connected to the terminal block contacts to diagrammatically illustrate the electrical connections; and
Figures 11a, lib, lie and lid diagrammatically illustrate the transfer steps to transfer a circuit from a cable and an old distribution cable to the cable and a new distribution cable without interruption of the circuit.
The present invention will be described with reference to the figures of the drawing wherein like parts have like reference numbers throughout the several views. The connector of the present invention is generally designated 15 and comprises a terminal block 16, having a pair of five pair covers 18, as illustrated, and a plurality of modular plugs 20 formed to mate with the terminal block and to make electrical connection to wires joined to the terminal block 16.
The terminal block 16 comprises a base 21 having transverse grooves formed between wire combs or posts 22 and posts 24 to define means for supporting a plurality of wires 23 positioned transversely across the base 21. The posts 22 are closely spaced, spaced less than the diameter of the insulation on the wires, such that when a wire is positioned therebetween it is held in place tightly. The inner wall of the base adjacent the posts 22 serves to sever the wires 23 when the covers 18 are assembled.on the base 21. As illustrated, the grooves are formed across the base 21 by spaced wire supports 25 and 26 and the supports are recessed to cradle the wires. The supports 25 are positioned adjacent to the posts 22 and 24 and are formed with closely spaced walls, see Figure 2, to receive the legs of a contact therebetween and the walls of the supports have a rib extending therebetween parallel to the path of the wire to support the wires 23 to drive them into the contacts between the legs thereof. Insulative walls 27 are positioned between the wire channels to isolate the contacts.
The covers 18 are adapted to fit on the base 21 and they support contacts 30 for making a permanent electrical connection to the wire pairs from a cable, they have a cutter bar 31 to sever the wires to length and they serve to encapsulate the wire ends and wire junctions in the base. The covers 18 have a plurality of wire positioning combs, combs 32 adjacent the right edge, combs 33 adjacent to the two rows of contacts 30, and a central comb 34 which fits between and holds the wires in the cradles formed by posts 26.
The covers 18 each have two rows of 10 apertures 35 affording access to the contacts 30 to make electrical connection with the wires. Each cover 18 has integrally formed walls defining a first cavity 36 for receiving the back of a modular plug 20. Positioned adjacent to the walls defining the cavity are walls defining a rectangular boss 37. The end walls defining the boss 37 have opposite outwardly facing keyways 38. The cavity and boss define location means about one row of apertures 35 for polarizing pairs of the apertures 35 along the bottom edge of the covers 18 of the terminal block and orient the plugs 20 on the terminal block. The apertures 35 of the first or bottom row are positioned within the cavities 36.
The second row of apertures 35, disposed in a row along the upper edge of the covers 18 are positioned above the second row of contacts 30. The apertures 35 accommodate the plugs 20 but do not have the location means surrounding them but they have the same appearance and spacing as the apertures 35 of the first row. In Figure 4, two plugs are illustrated in position on the location means at two places on the cover 18 and one plug 20e is illustrated in the assembled position on the second row of apertures 35. Referring now to Figures 4 through 10, the modular plug 20 comprises an insulative body 40 and a cap 41. The cap is attached to the body by integrally molded hinge portions defined by ears 42 on the body 40, having cavities and a hook shape center ear, to receive the trunnion 44 molded with the cap 41. The body is generally rectangular and box-like in outer appearance, which is defined by thin molded walls. The interior of the body 40 is formed with a support 43 for a pair of identical conductive metal splicing contacts 45. The cap 41 is formed with two wire receiving channels 46. An integrally molded resilient latch 47 projects between two wire receiving recesses 49 in the bottom side of the body 40 to a position to engage a detent 48 on the cap 41 to secure the cap in place when in the closed position.
Each splicing contact 45 is formed of a thin metal plate having a tuning fork contact portion 50 on one end adapted to make contact with a leg or blade of another contact and a wire insulation displacing contact portion 51 on the other end for making an electrical connection with a wire. The contact portion 51 is disposed in a plane at 90° to the plane of the tuning fork portion 50. The portion 51 has a deep slot 52 to receive the jumper wires and the slots 52 are disposed in aligned relationship with the channels 46 in the cap 41. The portions 50 and 51 are formed by bending the thin metal plate about an axis such that the centerline of the tuning fork contact 50 lies in a plane defined by the center axis of the portion 51. The plane of the tuning fork portion 50 is offset to make connection with one of the legs of the contact portion 51 or one of the contacts 30 at a position offset from the slot therein. As illustrated most clearly in Figures 7, 8 and 10, one contact 45 is rotated about a longitudinal axis by 180° in relationship to the other contact of the pair. The contacts 45 are positioned in the body 40 with the portions 50 projecting from the bottom surface sufficiently to penetrate the apertures 35 in the cover 18 and make good electrical contact with a contact 30. The bent portion of the contact forming the portion 51 provides a support surface for the contact 45 in the bottom of a cruciform recess molded in the support 43 of the body 40, see Figures 7 and 8 where the contacts 45 are held by barbs penetrating the walls of the recess and the support 43 has an aperture through which portion 50 of the contacts 45 project. The portion 51, on the other hand projects into the upper portion of the body to receive the jumper wire positioned therein by the cap wire receiving channels 46. The splicing contacts 45 are separated by a thin wall member 54 formed in the body 40 to electrically isolate the same.
The body 40 is formed with a rectangular recessed area to receive a boss. This area has keys 55 formed in the walls which keys 55 are of a size and shape to be received in the keyways 38 of the boss 37. The keys 55 and keyways 38 provide the orientation as described above and they also provide mechanical support to prevent forces from side loads (pulling on the jumper wires e.g.) from disturbing the electrical connection of a contact portion 50 with a contact 30 or a contact portion 51. The body 40 is also formed with a second resilient latch 59 in the bottom wall which is received by the recess 39 in the bottom wall member forming the cavity 36 on the cover 18 or in a recess 58 formed in the front part and lower wall 61 of cap 41, see Figure 8. The latch 59 is spaced from the support 43 for the splicing contacts 45, which support 43 is shaped to be received in the cavity 36 with the keys 55 in keyways 38 and the latch 59 in the recess 39. The walls of the body 40 surround the boss 37 and the walls defining the recess 36.
The cap 41 is hinged to pivot from a raised front wire loading position, see plug 20A with the cover open in Figure 4, to a closed position to dispose the wires in the channels 46 in the contact portions 51. Slots 53 are formed transversely to the channels 46 to receive the contact portions 51 but the channels serve to support the wire so it will be properly inserted into the slot 52 of the contact. The caps 41 are also provided with slots or apertures 60 in the top or front wall. The apertures 60 are surrounded by walls 61 defining another cavity 62 for receiving the splicing contact support 43 of a body 40. The apertures 60 are formed like the apertures 35 and the walls 61 also form a rectangular boss with keyways 64 to receive the keys 55. The bottom wall of the cap 41 has the recessed area 58 positioned above the detent 48 which will also receive the latch 59 to hold one plug 20 onto another in the stacked position. Figures 9 and 10 illustrate the stacking of the modular plugs, with the splicing contacts 45 of one plug making electrical contact with the legs of the contact portion 51 of the lower plug, which in turn is electrically connected to the bottom row of wire contacts 30.
The base 21 of the terminal block is preferably formed of glass-filled PBT thermoplastic and the covers 18 are formed of a similar insulative material. Since the base and cover are used to make a severing member for the wires they are both formed of a high tensile strength glass-filled engineering plastic with sufficient hardness to sever the wires. Even though the terminal block needs to make only one termination to the wires, if it is made from a strong plastic it restricts the need for metal cutting devices to be used in the severing of the wires. Suitable materials include Valox 420, available from General Electric Company, Plastics Group, One Plastics Avenue, Pittsfield, Massachusetts 01201, USA, 30% glass- filled Ultem, also available from General Electric Company or 30% glass-filled SAN available from ICI Advanced Materials, 475 Creamery Way, Exton, Pennsylvania. The connector of this invention is preferably sealed with a moisture restrictive sealant to encapsulate the junctions between the wires and contacts. Such sealant material will be placed in the base 21 and in the body 40 and cap 41.
The connector of the present invention affords the stacking of plugs 20 to provide for testing of the connections with the wires from the cable. The stacking also affords half tapping to the circuit. Additionally, plugs can be mounted on the covers and make electrical connections with the wires from the cables through the second row of apertures 35. Further, the novelty of having a pair of jumper wires in each repositionable modular plug permits the plug to be readily repositioned to move the subscriber from one incoming line to another by simply unplugging the plug 20 from one position and attaching it another place on the cover 18 or to another connector.
When it is desired to transfer a subscriber from an old line to a new line, the connector of the present invention makes such a transfer easy using one temporary and one replacement jumper line. When the transfer is finished, the temporary jumper line and the original jumper line are left over but both are reusable. Referring now to Figures 11a through lid, there is illustrated the steps of the transfer of a circuit between two cables 70 and 71 to a circuit between cables 70 and 72 without interrupting the continuity of the new circuit. The present circuit is between the incoming cable 70 to a terminal block 16a, joined by a plug 20a and jumper wire 75 to a plug 20b connected via the terminal block 16b to the old cable 71. The new cable 72 is joined to a terminal block 16c. The first step is to prepare a jumper consisting of a plug 20d, jumper wire 76 and a plug 20c. The plug 20d is stacked on plug 20a and plug 20c is connected to terminal block 16c. The first connection is made to the new line. Secondly, another jumper is prepared having a plug 20e, wire 77 and a plug 2Of. The plug 20e is connected to the contacts 30 joined to cable 70 beneath the second row of apertures 35 and the plug 2Of is stacked on top of plug 20d, see Figure lib. With these connections made there are redundant circuits between the cable 70 and the jumper wire 76. Now, plug 20a may be removed from the terminal block 16a and disconnected from plug 20d without interrupting the new circuit to cable 72. When plug 20d is positioned in the place of plug 20a, the transfer between the cable 70 and the cable 72 is complete and plugs 20e and 2Of may be unplugged. The plugs 20d and 20c are also positioned to resist pullout as were the original plugs 20a and 20b. The connector for use as a cross connect block has been described with reference to one embodiment. It is to be understood however that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, some modifications include the reduction in size of the covers and base to a single row of wire contacts 30 and making the same narrower, i.e. reducing the width of the base and covers to support only one row of contacts 30 and to have only the locating means; making the bases 25 pair long instead of 10, such that five covers 18 can be placed on one base 16; or making the covers longer.
The invention consists of a plug which permits facile connection of a wire pair to the plugs, stacking of the plugs to connect the pairs and disconnect the pairs, and a terminal block to which the plugs may be connected to join the wire pairs of the plugs to pairs of a cable.

Claims

Claims :
1. An electrical connector for connection of pairs of wires to other pairs of wires, said connector comprising: a block (16) having contacts (30) for terminating a plurality of wire pairs of a cable, the block (16) having access openings (35) affording connection of other wire contacts (45) to said contacts (30) , and plugs (20) having contacts (45) for plugging electrically to said contacts (30) characterized by the feature that said block (16) comprises a base (21) including means for supporting a plurality of wires transversely thereof, a cover (18) adapted to fit on the base (21) , said cover (18) having a plurality of terminal contacts (30) for making connection to wires supported by the base (21) and for enclosing the ends of the wires in the base (21) , said cover (18) having pairs of apertures (35) affording access to said contacts (30) , and said cover (18) having location means (36,37) about said apertures (35) for polarizing pairs of said apertures; and a plurality of plugs (20) for making contact with said contacts (30) in said block (16) , said plugs (20) comprising an insulative body (40) having opposite ends and a hinged cap (41) supported on one end, a splicing contact (45) supported in said body (40) with opposite end portions, one end portion (50) of said contact (45) being a tuning fork contact adapted to make electrical connection with said terminal contacts (30) and the other end portion (51) being an insulation displacing contact adapted to make electrical connection to a jumper wire, said cap (41) having means for facilitating connection between a said jumper wire and said other end portion (51) of said splicing contact (45) and having an aperture (60) therein affording access to said portion (51) of said splicing contact (45) and location means (61,62) about said apertures (60) to afford proper location of a second plug on said cap (41) , the other end of said body (40) having means (43) for mating with said location means (36,37) of said cover (18) or (61,62) of a cap (41) for positioning said one end portion (50) of said splicing contact (45) in a said aperture (35, 60) to make electrical contact to a said terminal contact (30) or a splicing contact (45) .
2. A connector according to claim 1 wherein said cover (18) has two rows of terminal contacts (30) for making connection to wires disposed in the base member, with one contact in each row being positioned to make electrical connection to each said wire.
3. A connector according to claim 2 wherein said cover (18) has two rows of apertures (35) positioned therein allowing access to each terminal contact (30) in said two rows.
4. A connector according to claim 3 wherein said location means (36,37) is formed on said cover (18) above one of said rows of apertures (35) .
5. A connector according to claim 1 wherein said location means includes wall means which form a cavity around a pair of said apertures.
6. A connector according to claim 1 wherein said plug (20) comprises a pair of said splicing contacts (45) , and said tuning fork contact portion (50) is disposed in angular relationship to said insulation displacing portion (51) .
7. An electrical plug for connecting a pair of wires to a second pair of wires, said plug comprising a body (40) , a pair of contacts (45) supported in said body and extending from one end of said body and an aperture at the other end of said body affording entry of wires to make electrical connection to said contacts (45) , characterized by the feature that said body (40) has a cap (41) hinged to the other end of said body, said one end of said body having recess means and contact support means (43) for supporting a pair of identical contacts
(45) and polarizing said contacts (45) in relationship to a receptacle, and said cap (41) having wire receiving means for supporting a pair of wires for making connection with said contacts (45) when said cap closes said other end of said body.
8. A plug according to claim 7 wherein said cap (41) has said wire receiving means disposed on one side of the cap facing the body (40) and means (61,62) defining a receptacle for a mating plug is formed on the other side of the cap (41) .
9. A plug according to claim 7 wherein said contact support means (43) comprises an integrally molded support within said body (40) with recess means and aperture means for supporting said contacts (45) , said contacts having opposite end portions (50,51) and one end portion (50) extending beyond said one side of said body and from said contact support means (43) for connection to an external member.
10. A plug according to claim 9 wherein said pair of contacts (45) comprise a thin metal plate having a wire insulation displacing contact portion (51) on the other end portion and a tuning fork contact portion on said one end portion (50) , which tuning fork contact portion (50) is disposed in angular relationship to said insulation displacing portion (51) .
EP92918775A 1991-09-23 1992-08-24 Improved cross connect system for telecommunications systems Expired - Lifetime EP0605467B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US07/764,177 US5178558A (en) 1991-09-23 1991-09-23 Cross connect system for telecommunications systems
PCT/US1992/006970 WO1993006636A1 (en) 1991-09-23 1992-08-24 Improved cross connect system for telecommunications systems
US764177 1996-12-13

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0605467A1 true EP0605467A1 (en) 1994-07-13
EP0605467B1 EP0605467B1 (en) 1995-11-08

Family

ID=25069895

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP92918775A Expired - Lifetime EP0605467B1 (en) 1991-09-23 1992-08-24 Improved cross connect system for telecommunications systems

Country Status (21)

Country Link
US (1) US5178558A (en)
EP (1) EP0605467B1 (en)
JP (1) JP3195348B2 (en)
KR (1) KR100247874B1 (en)
CN (1) CN1035851C (en)
AU (1) AU670246B2 (en)
BR (1) BR9206511A (en)
CA (1) CA2114417C (en)
CZ (3) CZ283952B6 (en)
DE (1) DE69205988T2 (en)
DK (1) DK0605467T3 (en)
ES (1) ES2079887T3 (en)
FI (1) FI941328A (en)
HU (1) HU216455B (en)
MX (1) MX9205258A (en)
MY (1) MY108083A (en)
NO (1) NO307635B1 (en)
PL (1) PL168076B1 (en)
RU (1) RU2114494C1 (en)
WO (1) WO1993006636A1 (en)
ZA (1) ZA926373B (en)

Families Citing this family (48)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5364288A (en) * 1992-07-24 1994-11-15 North American Philips Corporation Electrical connecting device
DE4312781C2 (en) * 1993-04-20 1995-10-19 Vossloh Schwabe Gmbh Connection element for at least one electrical equipment
US5338221A (en) * 1993-06-09 1994-08-16 Molex Incorporated Electrical connector for high density ribbon cable
US5449299A (en) * 1994-01-24 1995-09-12 Raychem Corporation Telecommunications terminal
DE69413524T2 (en) * 1994-07-01 1999-02-11 Minnesota Mining & Mfg Cross-connection system for telecommunication systems
WO1996029759A1 (en) * 1995-03-17 1996-09-26 The Whitaker Corporation Add-on mtu assembly for use in a telephone subscriber junction box
US5779504A (en) * 1995-09-29 1998-07-14 Reltec Corporation Modular terminal block assembly
US5741161A (en) * 1996-01-04 1998-04-21 Pcd Inc. Electrical connection system with discrete wire interconnections
SE507939C2 (en) * 1996-04-23 1998-08-03 Asea Brown Boveri Device for transmitting electrical signals
GB9616098D0 (en) * 1996-07-31 1996-09-11 Amp Great Britain Wire retainer
US5961340A (en) * 1997-03-14 1999-10-05 Reltec Corporation Wire trimmer
US6146167A (en) * 1998-09-16 2000-11-14 Telect, Inc. Telecommunication module having edge mounted jack and switch therefor
US6587354B1 (en) 1998-09-18 2003-07-01 Duane B. Kutsch Telecommunication assembly
JP2000100539A (en) * 1998-09-28 2000-04-07 Sumitomo Wiring Syst Ltd Connector and its manufacture
FR2791185B1 (en) * 1999-03-16 2001-06-01 Infra Sa LOW VOLTAGE CONNECTOR PROVIDED WITH AN ADAPTER AND ADAPTER FOR SUCH A CONNECTOR
US6210204B1 (en) * 1999-12-27 2001-04-03 Hon Hai Precision Ind. Co., Ltd. Electrical connector having barrier for preventing electrical sparks between adjacent terminals
JP2003346940A (en) * 2002-05-27 2003-12-05 Nec Corp Relay terminal block and power supply unit with the same
US6752665B2 (en) * 2002-11-18 2004-06-22 Trompeter Electronics, Inc. Modular cross-connect with removable switch assembly
US20050026506A1 (en) * 2002-11-18 2005-02-03 Trompeter Electronics, Inc. Modular cross-connect with hot-swappable modules
US7261590B2 (en) * 2004-04-26 2007-08-28 Panduit Corp. Rack-mounted punchdown panel and punchdown base
US7101216B2 (en) * 2004-09-15 2006-09-05 3M Innovative Properties Company Insulation displacement system for two electrical conductors
US7335049B2 (en) * 2004-09-15 2008-02-26 3M Innovative Properties Company Connector assembly for housing insulation displacement elements
US7399197B2 (en) * 2004-09-15 2008-07-15 3M Innovative Properties Company Connector assembly for housing insulation displacement elements
US7458840B2 (en) * 2004-09-15 2008-12-02 3M Innovative Properties Company Cap configured to removably connect to an insulation displacement connector block
GB2407715A (en) * 2005-02-25 2005-05-04 High Performance Pc Ltd Cable arrangement
US20060264090A1 (en) * 2005-05-18 2006-11-23 Dower William V Electrical connector assembly and method of forming the same
US7303446B2 (en) * 2005-05-18 2007-12-04 3M Innovative Proprties Company Frame assembly
US7223117B2 (en) * 2005-06-30 2007-05-29 3M Innovative Properties Company Circuit marker apparatus
US7331814B2 (en) * 2005-06-30 2008-02-19 3M Innovative Properties Company Apparatus configured to attach to an electrical connector block
TWI297559B (en) * 2006-03-06 2008-06-01 3M Innovative Properties Co Cross connect terminal block
US7393249B2 (en) * 2006-04-21 2008-07-01 Trompeter Electronics, Inc. Interconnection and monitoring module
DE102006052119A1 (en) * 2006-11-06 2008-05-08 Robert Bosch Gmbh Cutting-clamp connection, as well as method for connecting two components
US7530836B2 (en) * 2007-04-30 2009-05-12 3M Innovative Properties Company Cap for telecommunications cross connect block
CN101350453B (en) * 2007-07-17 2010-11-03 3M创新有限公司 Electric connector
DE202007010781U1 (en) * 2007-07-31 2007-09-27 CCS Technology, Inc., Wilmington Distribution bar of a telecommunications system
CN101785146A (en) * 2007-08-24 2010-07-21 3M创新有限公司 Termination tool, insulation displacement connector (IDC) block and method for electrically connecting an electrical conductor to an idc block
SG152076A1 (en) * 2007-10-12 2009-05-29 Adc Gmbh Cross connect block
US8760875B2 (en) * 2009-11-24 2014-06-24 Telect, Inc. High density digital signal cross-connect system
DE102010009805B4 (en) * 2010-03-01 2013-02-14 Phoenix Contact Gmbh & Co. Kg jumper
US8215980B1 (en) * 2011-04-13 2012-07-10 Jyh Eng Technology Co., Ltd. Connector having a housing with partition walls with hooked portions and pivotally coupled cover shells
DE102011101201B4 (en) * 2011-05-11 2019-12-05 Tyco Electronics Services Gmbh Distributor connection module and method for wiring a distributor connection module
CN103022843A (en) * 2011-09-23 2013-04-03 3M中国有限公司 Linear diameter converter applying on high density copper cable junction module
DE102012214516A1 (en) * 2012-06-19 2013-12-19 Tyco Electronics Amp Gmbh Distribution connection module
JP6050196B2 (en) * 2013-08-09 2016-12-21 株式会社オートネットワーク技術研究所 Wire harness and connector
US9287663B1 (en) * 2014-08-26 2016-03-15 Lg Chem, Ltd. Electrical connector and method of electrically coupling first and second electrical terminals of first and second battery cells to one another
JP6107847B2 (en) * 2015-02-10 2017-04-05 日本精工株式会社 Terminal connection structure, motor, actuator, electric power steering device and vehicle
TWI608674B (en) * 2017-08-14 2017-12-11 慶良電子股份有限公司 Signal transfering device and adapter assembly
CN107843806B (en) * 2017-10-30 2020-08-28 阳光电源股份有限公司 Wiring detection method and device and photovoltaic power generation system

Family Cites Families (20)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2704832A (en) * 1954-03-23 1955-03-22 Acad Electrical Prod Corp Multiple cord plug receptacle
AR208483A1 (en) * 1975-11-10 1976-12-27 Amp Inc ELECTRICAL TERMINAL
US4118095A (en) * 1977-07-06 1978-10-03 Bell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated Wire connecting block
DE2814069C3 (en) * 1978-03-30 1982-03-25 Krone Gmbh, 1000 Berlin Device and method for producing a contact free of soldering, screwing and stripping on a fixed connection element, in particular for telecommunications line technology
US4193201A (en) * 1978-11-29 1980-03-18 Bell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated Solderless electrical connector construction
US4210378A (en) * 1979-04-23 1980-07-01 Minnesota Mining And Manufacturing Company Electrical wire connection
US4341430A (en) * 1980-11-05 1982-07-27 Amp Incorporated Flat cable connector
DE3137429C2 (en) * 1981-09-19 1984-03-22 Krone Gmbh, 1000 Berlin Connection device in a connection strip
US4431247A (en) * 1982-04-23 1984-02-14 Minnesota Mining And Manufacturing Company Insulated terminal and module
GB2129630B (en) * 1982-11-04 1986-03-05 Egerton A C Ltd Terminal block
GB2136638A (en) * 1983-03-09 1984-09-19 Cannon Electric Electrical connectors
DE3581138D1 (en) * 1984-08-07 1991-02-07 Sumitomo Wiring Systems CONNECTOR DEVICE FOR CONNECTING ELECTRICAL CABLES.
US4552429A (en) * 1984-10-01 1985-11-12 Amp Incorporated Modular electrical connector for connecting wires in cable ends
DE3614592C1 (en) * 1986-04-30 1987-07-23 Krone Ag Terminal block for cable cores, especially telephone cables
US4789354A (en) * 1987-09-14 1988-12-06 Minnesota Mining And Manufacturing Company Voice/data communication termination connector
US4815988A (en) * 1987-12-14 1989-03-28 Minnesota Mining And Manufacturing Company Two-step wire connection and cut-off terminal
JPH01173579A (en) * 1987-12-28 1989-07-10 Yazaki Corp Multipoint connector
EP0438120B1 (en) 1990-01-16 1994-07-27 Yazaki Corporation Branch junction box and busbars for branch connection
ES2066235T3 (en) * 1990-03-13 1995-03-01 Krone Ag TERMINAL REGULATION FOR TELECOMMUNICATION AND DATA TECHNIQUE.
US5153988A (en) * 1990-03-26 1992-10-13 Raychem Corporation Method of making modular telecommunications terminal block

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See references of WO9306636A1 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
DK0605467T3 (en) 1996-03-11
FI941328A0 (en) 1994-03-22
CN1035851C (en) 1997-09-10
AU2540592A (en) 1993-04-27
AU670246B2 (en) 1996-07-11
BR9206511A (en) 1995-11-07
MY108083A (en) 1996-08-15
ZA926373B (en) 1993-03-11
KR100247874B1 (en) 2000-03-15
EP0605467B1 (en) 1995-11-08
CZ63594A3 (en) 1994-07-13
RU2114494C1 (en) 1998-06-27
CZ286423B6 (en) 2000-04-12
CZ15596A3 (en) 1996-09-11
FI941328A (en) 1994-03-22
JP3195348B2 (en) 2001-08-06
US5178558A (en) 1993-01-12
NO941042D0 (en) 1994-03-22
PL168076B1 (en) 1995-12-30
NO941042L (en) 1994-03-22
DE69205988T2 (en) 1996-07-04
HUT66048A (en) 1994-09-28
WO1993006636A1 (en) 1993-04-01
CZ283952B6 (en) 1998-07-15
CN1071280A (en) 1993-04-21
CA2114417C (en) 2003-07-08
HU9400295D0 (en) 1994-05-30
JPH06510884A (en) 1994-12-01
ES2079887T3 (en) 1996-01-16
DE69205988D1 (en) 1995-12-14
HU216455B (en) 1999-06-28
CA2114417A1 (en) 1993-04-01
MX9205258A (en) 1993-03-01
NO307635B1 (en) 2000-05-02

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
EP0605467B1 (en) Improved cross connect system for telecommunications systems
US5504654A (en) Cross connect system for telecommunications systems
KR910004801B1 (en) Round cable adapter for modular plug
AU601107B2 (en) Connecting block construction
US5460545A (en) Patch connector
US4759723A (en) Patch connector
US4865564A (en) Wall mounted connecting block
GB1588841A (en) Electrical terminal assemblies
PL209001B1 (en) Connecting block for cross connections
GB1588842A (en) Electrical terminal assemblies
US4834669A (en) Patch connector
US5514005A (en) Quick connect/disconnect module
US5496192A (en) Cross-connection module providing for uninterruptible transmission during servicing
US5470250A (en) Bridging terminal block
US4550971A (en) Connector
US6238250B1 (en) In-jack shunt connections and methods therefor
US6083011A (en) Connector switching mechanism with improved cap retention
US4904210A (en) Telecommunications connector
CA1284832C (en) Telecommunications connector

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
PUAI Public reference made under article 153(3) epc to a published international application that has entered the european phase

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009012

17P Request for examination filed

Effective date: 19940418

AK Designated contracting states

Kind code of ref document: A1

Designated state(s): CH DE DK ES FR GB IE LI NL SE

17Q First examination report despatched

Effective date: 19941004

GRAA (expected) grant

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009210

AK Designated contracting states

Kind code of ref document: B1

Designated state(s): CH DE DK ES FR GB IE LI NL SE

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: IE

Ref legal event code: FG4D

Free format text: 66077

REF Corresponds to:

Ref document number: 69205988

Country of ref document: DE

Date of ref document: 19951214

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: ES

Ref legal event code: FG2A

Ref document number: 2079887

Country of ref document: ES

Kind code of ref document: T3

ET Fr: translation filed
REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: CH

Ref legal event code: NV

Representative=s name: E. BLUM & CO. PATENTANWAELTE

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: DK

Ref legal event code: T3

PLBE No opposition filed within time limit

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009261

STAA Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent

Free format text: STATUS: NO OPPOSITION FILED WITHIN TIME LIMIT

26N No opposition filed
PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: FR

Payment date: 20010801

Year of fee payment: 10

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: SE

Payment date: 20010802

Year of fee payment: 10

Ref country code: DE

Payment date: 20010802

Year of fee payment: 10

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: DK

Payment date: 20010803

Year of fee payment: 10

Ref country code: CH

Payment date: 20010803

Year of fee payment: 10

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: NL

Payment date: 20010807

Year of fee payment: 10

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: IE

Payment date: 20010816

Year of fee payment: 10

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: ES

Payment date: 20010906

Year of fee payment: 10

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: GB

Ref legal event code: IF02

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: SE

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20020825

Ref country code: ES

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20020825

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: IE

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20020826

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: LI

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20020831

Ref country code: CH

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20020831

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: DK

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20020930

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: NL

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20030301

Ref country code: DE

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20030301

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: DK

Ref legal event code: EBP

EUG Se: european patent has lapsed
REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: CH

Ref legal event code: PL

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: FR

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20030430

NLV4 Nl: lapsed or anulled due to non-payment of the annual fee

Effective date: 20030301

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: IE

Ref legal event code: MM4A

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: FR

Ref legal event code: ST

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: ES

Ref legal event code: FD2A

Effective date: 20030912

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: GB

Payment date: 20040818

Year of fee payment: 13

PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: GB

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20050824

GBPC Gb: european patent ceased through non-payment of renewal fee

Effective date: 20050824